Rai Committed To His Principles despite Pressure
At a time the coming week is crowded with a diary full of political headlines, the weekend kept its traces on a single title: Maronite Patriarch in Baalbek-Hermel raising partnership and love as a key to the new patriarchy era.
The Maronite Patriarch Bshara Rai ended his visit to the city of sun.
However, the Bikaii scene cleared on a number of facts:
"March 14" campaign showed a great failure in its attempt to make Rai retreat from his stances regarding Syria and the resistance.
Patriarch Fixed to love-Partnership
Defying all "March 14" criticisms and western pressure, Patriarch upheld his statements on Syria and resistance arms echoing Imam Moussa al-Sadr's voice of love and wisdom.
In parallel, the public unprecedented warm welcome that Rai received in Baalbek- Hermel showed that all the sectarian fears that "March 14" raises turned into fog in face of the sun of unity, dialogue, and co-existence.
"It's high time for the Lebanese to sit together at the dialogue table. We must be up to the level of those pre-independence Lebanese leaders who sat before us and worked out the Muslim-Christian National Covenant," Rai said in a speech at a dinner hosted by Head of Hizbullah Juristic Board His Eminence Sheikh Mohammad Yazbek who gave Rai a handmade carpet depicting Jesus Christ's Last Supper.
Electricity Parliament's Visitor
At another level, Parliament's joint committees are to resume their discussion of the
electricity bill Monday amid media information that Parliament will pass the draft law this week.
The committees failed Thursday to approve the bill after "March 14" MPs lost the required quorum in a move that carried many malicious reflections.
Should Monday's session have a similar outcome, House Speaker Nabih Berri is expected to hold a legislative session later this week to pass the draft law as the Parliamentary blocs represented in the government have enough votes to endorse the bill.
Energy Minister Jebran Bassil accused "March 14" of suffering from "political schizophrenia".
In an interview with "as-Safir" Lebanese daily, Bassil noted that "the electricity farce should end at the meeting of joint parliamentary committees on Monday either through consensus or voting.
""March 14" MPs have all the answers are in their hands," Bassil said stressing that "the era of discussion ended after more than a year and a half of give-and-take and more than 20 years of power cuts.
Uncovering that the "majority has made its decision and agreed on the project to salvage electricity," the minister of energy added that "it was now the turn of the minority to approve the plan as it is or reject it."
"If opposition approves it, then it would become a partner in this accomplishment and if it rejects it, then it would bear the repercussions of this stance," Bassil emphasized.
In the same context, "Change and Reform Bloc" sources expressed to "as-Safir" their hop that "the discussion on the bill would end during Monday's session."
However, they expressed regret at the possibility of the opposition's attempt to waste time to send a message to the Lebanese that it was capable of introducing changes to the bill.
"Bassil has the answers to all the "March 14" MPs' questions but the long statements made by them prevented the minister from explaining his point of view during last week's meeting," the sources added.
Sources close to Prime Minister Najib Mikati denied to "an-Nahar" newspaper "all rumors about the existence of duplication in the government's position, particularly in terms of Mikati's position of the electricity bill."
Sources pointed out that "the government will defend vigorously the plan adopted by the Parliament," denying "the existence of an implicit injunction to push the project towards failure."
Suleiman to New York:
Separately, Lebanese President Michel Suleiman heads to New York to take the podium to address global heads of state at the 66th meeting of the United Nations General Assembly this week.
A high-ranking Lebanese official told "as-Safir" newspaper that during his speech on the 21st of this month, Suleiman will stress the importance of U.N. recognition of the Palestinian state and a fair solution to refugees through their return to their homeland.
"Suleiman will reiterate commitment to 1701, stress Lebanon's right on its maritime borders and Exclusive Economic Zone as well as Lebanon's right to liberate the rest of "Israeli"-occupied Lebanese land through all legitimate means," sources informed.
Meanwhile, a high-ranking ministerial delegation will accompany Suleiman to the U.N. Ministers Adnan Mansour, Wael Abou Faour and Nazem Khoury, in addition to an administrative, diplomatic and media delegation is scheduled to travel with him.
For his part, Lebanese Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour indicated that "Lebanon would abstain from any possible sanctions against Syria during its time at the helm of the Security Council."
Away from the political concerns, Lebanese media was greatly occupied with the horrible massacre that took place Sunday night in Beirut.
Six children and their mother were shot to deathi n their apartment in Ras al- Nabi area.
Security sources citing preliminary investigations informed Lebanese papers that "a family member i.e. the eldest brother had killed his mother and five siblings before committing suicide with an automatic hunting rifle."
Source: Lebanese Newspapers, Translated and Edited by moqawama.org
